Another important element of Cisco N1KV is VSM to vCenter communication.

The VSM connects via the management interface using a self-signed SSL certificate. It uses the vCenter API. Through this API, it can create port groups and pull data from the vCenter. The VSM can also store the DVS data in the vCenter database through this API.

It can also create dvPort groups, distributed virtual switch port groups, in the vCenter and store the VDS data to be passed to ESXi hosts, which become members of the Nexus switch. It also gets useful information from the vCenter about its current structure.